Dancing and Smiles

Friday was a day that reminded me why I do what I do.

The past two weeks I have had two to three students shutdown and cry during our spelling test. 
One student did much better this week but I  still had one boy who cried and threw a fit.
I encouraged them all to do their best, sound out the word and write down the letters they heard.
The boy wasn't even trying so I talked to him one-on-one and said he could try it now or would come in at recess and take it. That made him even more mad because he didn't want to miss recess.

He came in at recess and we took the test one-on-one at my horseshoe table. He was able to sound out the word but couldn't remember how to write the letters. I told him to look at my alphabet on the wall and see if he could figure it out. It took extra time but he did it! The look on his face was priceless. A wilting boy who was frustrated with himself now lit up with a smile from ear to ear. I passed out the test at the end of the day and he rushed to see how he did. "I only missed two!" he exclaimed, "Will you call my dad and tell him how good I did?" I told him to go home and show his dad his paper. I also wrote a note home to his parents sharing with them how much better he did on his test. Apparently his dad worked with him last night on his spelling words, something that has rarely happened since school has started.

I hope he continues to grow as the school year goes on. He just needs that little extra love and encouragement and that is what I am here to give.


After our tests Friday we celebrated. We danced to Follow the Leader and did a snake dance around the room. The joy on my students' faces throughout the day make coming to work something I look forward to daily.


Now for a wonderful extra long weekend! Time to rest, cheer on the Sooners and treasure the moments with family!